Anaheim Police Dept(ANAHEIM, Calif.) -- It was a harrowing night for the Anaheim Police Department. After officers responded Monday to an incident at an apartment complex, Bruno, a police canine, was shot.

“As the teams were searching, the dog alerted them to a suspect hiding behind or near a trash can. When the dog went up to make contact, the suspect, who was armed with a gun, stepped up and shot the dog and the officers at the same time,” said Lt. Tim Schmidt.

Bruno, a six-year veteran of the department, was struck in the face and immediately went down, according to Schmidt.

“Because the suspect was firing in their direction, they officers fired back and killed the suspect,” Schmidt said.

Bruno was then transferred to the emergency room and underwent hours of surgery. The bullet round exited his lower jaw and reentered the body in the chest cavity, just an inch from his heart. He lost part of his lung. The bullet was not removed because of the trauma of the surgery.

“The next 12-18 hours will decide if the dog can make it,” Schmidt said. “There’s no doubt this dog saved three officers through the heroic effort of what he did doing his job.”